Union General John Hunt Oley was one of six New Yorkers sent to train Western Virginia troops when the war started. He organized the 8th (West) Virginia Infantry (which later became the 8th West Virginia Mounted Infantry and then 7th West Virginia Cavalry). After the war, he worked in Charleston before moving to Huntington, where he helped develop the city, playing an active role in local government and church life. He's buried in Huntington's Spring Hill Cemetery, where a monument--paid for by the citizens of Huntington--honors him.